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Skilled Trades

Agricultural Equipment Operators

Drive and control equipment to support agricultural activities such as tilling soil; planting, cultivating, and harvesting crops; feeding and herding livestock; or removing animal waste. May perform tasks such as crop baling or hay bucking. May operate stationary equipment to perform post-harvest tasks such as husking, shelling, threshing, and ginning.

Median salary (BLS)

$41,730

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$34k – $59k

Job outlook

+8% (faster than average)

AI exposure

Plan a path to Agricultural Equipment Operators

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Education

Typical entry: No degree required

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How to qualify

EstimateLicense required

Cost to qualify

$100–$2,600

Time to qualify

3.1 yr

Renewal

$50/yr

  1. 1

    Registered apprenticeship (paid)

    Experience

    Earn-while-you-learn training — apprentices are paid during the program; fees are tools/books, not tuition.

    $0–$2,000 · 36 months · varies by state source

  2. 2

    Journeyman exam & state/local license

    License

    Most states and municipalities test and license journeyman-level trades workers.

    $100–$600 · 1 months · varies by state · renews every 2 yr source

Estimated typical U.S. route for "Agricultural Equipment Operators" — built from BLS education requirements and College Board 2024–25 average published prices (public, in-state tuition + fees + books). Not yet verified against a specific state's licensing rules — confirm with your state licensing board or program.

Typical progression

  1. Junior Agricultural Equipment Operators

    Entry / Junior

    $33,500

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Agricultural Equipment Operators

    Established

    $41,730

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Agricultural Equipment Operators

    Senior

    $50,190

Key skills

A typical day

  • •Load and unload crops or containers of materials, manually or using conveyors, handtrucks, forklifts, or transfer augers.
  • •Mix specified materials or chemicals, and dump solutions, powders, or seeds into planter or sprayer machinery.
  • •Spray fertilizer or pesticide solutions to control insects, fungus and weed growth, and diseases, using hand sprayers.
  • •Observe and listen to machinery operation to detect equipment malfunctions.
  • •Manipulate controls to set, activate, and adjust mechanisms on machinery.

Fields of study

Any field

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Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.